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BA Honours Fashion Design

Overview

"The course helped me think wider and go further. This new way of thinking has helped direct my career progression."
Yanki Leung, BA Fashion

If you aspire to become the classic designer/maker and you're eager to break new ground in the world of fashion, our BA Honours Fashion Design degree will equip you with technical skill, support your creativity, and encourage you to develop your own identity as a designer.

Why study BA Fashion Design at Middlesex?

On this degree you will not only learn the knowledge and practical skills essential for a successful career in fashion design, as so many of our alumni illustrate, but also develop self-confidence, a willingness to challenge yourself, the ability to work with others, and the skills to discover and define your own design identity. Our course puts the emphasis firmly on creativity and the ability to develop your own designs.

Using our state-of-the-art facilities in London, you will work with dedicated and passionate tutors and technical staff, exploring the many aspects of fashion through an intense programme of study in our well equipped studio workshops. We lay emphasis on research and design development in order to lay the foundation for innovative design for which Fashion at Middlesex is well known. We cover fashion illustration, portfolio presentation, technical drawings, garment construction and pattern cutting, corsetry, and tailoring. Our degree caters for both menswear and womenswear design, with specialist staff from each discipline.

Course highlights:

You will be taught by an invested and supportive team of tutors and technicians who all work in the industry, including pattern cutters and designers

During the second year you will benefit from a six-week industry work placement, with your choice of fashion practitioner, as they work towards London Fashion Week – our students have worked for a range of designers including Peter Pillotto, Giles Deacon, Louise Gray, and Sir Tom Baker

At the end of your degree you will exhibit your work in the Art and Design Degree Show, a professional standard showcase giving you the opportunity to expose your creative talent to creative industry employers

The studio workshops in our state-of-the-art £80 million facility, The Grove, mean almost everything can be done in house and you have access to a wide range of art and design facilities to help realise your ideas through art forms such as photography, illustration and reprographics

Your will learn from an exciting array of fashion experts, professional speakers, leading subject specialists and live projects sponsored by industry, and have the opportunity to be selected for an external press show – previous judges include industry experts Louise Gray, JJS Lee and James Long

Our varied and extensive learning resources support your research and not just with books but also wonderful collections of film, journals and magazines and a museum-quality collection of 3D pieces including historical dress and accessories

Did you know?

Course Content

What will you study?

In your first year you will intensively focus on developing technical skills including pattern cutting and garment making alongside your creative design skills. In your first project you will learn the techniques behind good shirt design then work on your own shirt-inspired creation. Throughout the year you will keep an online research journal to reflect on fashion in contemporary culture and this will feed into your other projects.

Your second year further develops your technical skills, including a menswear tailoring project and a 2D to 3D translation project where you re-create an outfit by a designer and create a range of your own designs based on this. You will also spend six to eight weeks on a work placement in the run up to London Fashion Week, gaining hands-on experience working for a designer. Our students have recently worked for leading industry names like Burberry, Peter Pilotto, Louise Gray, and Giles Deacon on their placements.

The third year gives you time to focus on the specialisms you have developed over the previous years and hone your skills for your final portfolio of work. Your final collection can be based on anything you are inspired by and there are opportunities to attend masterclasses in working with materials like jersey, leather and fur. The final year of your degree fully prepares you to enter the fashion industry with your own design identity.

Fashion Skills Two
(30 Credits)
- Compulsory

- The module aims to introduce students to the contexts for Fashion histories in order to provide a rich visual and intellectual resource for their developing research practices both studio and academic. - We aim to work with students to lay the foundations for good research practice by encouraging them to work in a hands-on way with the archives, collections and resources of London s major collections - Good connections between studio projects and lectures, seminars and study visits will enhance the students ability to make connections between research and practice. - The module aims to develop student s knowledge and understanding of the visual cultures of clothing and styling in London to the extent that by Level 5 they will be able to move to more difficult projects of theorization. - The module aims to develop good writing and communication skills.

Generic Fashion
(30 Credits)
- Compulsory

This module aims to: - Introduce and develop the academic and professional environment that lays a foundation for future study on the Fashion Design programme. - Introduce and develop fashion awareness. - Introduce and develop the range of skills to communicate research effectively including presentation and editing of information from traditional learning sources also through the use of blogs and online media.

Year 2

Advanced Fashion Skills
(30 Credits)
- Compulsory

This module aims to: - Develop the processes involved in pattern cutting and constructing unstructured and structured garments. - Develop the ability to translate 2D designs into 3D garments. - Develop the ability to produce experimental and modern design details in 3D. - Translate silhouettes generated on the stand into 2D flat patterns.

Developing Fashion
(60 Credits)
- Compulsory

This module aims to: - Encourage a widening of awareness of the fashion industry - Develop research skills, analyse contemporary style and learn how to create, manipulate and rework imagery to communicate ideas. - Develop observational drawing skills necessary for visual communication. - Develop technical skills relevant to the focus of the degree. - Provide the opportunity for a work placement within the Fashion industry.

Fashion Cultures
(30 Credits)
- Compulsory

- Building on work at Level 4 this module introduces the concept of fashion as both culture and industry. - We aim to explore the link between the fashion industries and the processes of globalisation. - Students are introduced to the idea of fashion as a system and asked to consider the role of their practice- fashion textiles, styling, promotion, design etc. within this fashion system . - To understand some of the ethical issues raised by the fashion industries. - Be able to theorize and understand their own developing practice within a wider fashion system. - The module aims to further extend the writing and communication skills developed at Level 4.

Year 3

Critical and Contextual Research Project
(30 Credits)
- Compulsory

- This module aims to enable students to identify and deliver a written research project related to their development as creative studio practitioners. - The project will involve sustained and analytical engagement with a wide range of research resources, in order to enrich an aspect of studio practice through greater understanding of its historical, theoretical, discursive and social contexts. - The module will consolidate the development of skills gained at level four and five, of project identification, research organisation and development, time management, visual analysis and critical argument. - Students will extend their ability to think creatively about the professional presentation of conceptual, critical and contextual material in both written and visual form. - Students will further consolidate the development of skills required for autonomous learning.

- Working in the context of the major design projects the module aims to enable students to audit and articulate their design practice in relation to the different fields of knowledge design and communication, professional practice, technologies and processes, history and theory developed throughout their studies. - This module aims to consolidate all previous learning and to refine and finalise the final professional portfolio and/or collection

Teaching

Teaching and assessment

You will be assessed through practical design projects and written assignments. Your design projects will be stage-assessed throughout the creative process, looking at research, design, garment creation and presentation. The course is intensive and we place particular emphasis on good attendance as part of our assessment criteria.

Entry Requirements

Entry Requirements:

We will consider all applications on their individual merit; successful applicants should demonstrate suitability, dedication and fitness for their chosen programme of study. All candidates are asked to submit evidence of previous production and creative practice, normally presented as a portfolio. As far as possible, students are invited to attend for interview and will be offered the opportunity to view the School and meet appropriate staff and students. Where prior qualifications are not available; applicants with appropriate experience will be assessed on the evidence of their commitment and the quality of their portfolio.

The School normally makes offers on condition of 280 UCAS tariff points in line with our long held belief that the achievement of distinction from a Foundation or Level 3 Diploma or BTEC National Diploma in Art and Design is an excellent preparation for our courses. The International Baccalaureate and Advanced Progression Diplomas, specialising in Art and Design subjects, are also accepted at the equivalent tariff and above. We accept the Access to HE Diploma. GCSE English with a minimum of Grade C is required for a student entering the University.

International Entry Requirements

Recognised overseas qualifications must evidence at least the equivalent standards as home students. The School invites the submission of portfolios from all of its applicants so that we can assess ability and potential. To find out more about the requirements from your country of origin, please see further information under support in your country.

Applicants must have competence in English language and we normally require Grade C GCSE or an equivalent qualification. The most common English Language requirements for international students are IELTS 6.0 (with minimum 5.5 in all four components) or TOEFL internet based 72 (with at least 17 in listening & writing, 20 in speaking and 18 in reading).

Portfolio and Interview

The application is just the first step in our selection process, we also invite you to an interview and review your portfolio of art and design work.

Your interview

The interview itself usually lasts about 15 minutes, but please allow an hour as this usually includes a tour of our facilities. We use the interview to allow us to find out more about you, to better understand your aspirations and interests and for you to learn more about us. The interview will explore why you want to study the subject with us, there will be no trick questions, so don't be too nervous.

Your portfolio

We've put together a short video to help you prepare your portfolio.

Visit an Open Day

We strongly advise all prospective applicants to attend an Open Day. You will be able to talk to staff and students, listen to talks on the subject areas that interest you, ask questions and go on a workshop tour.

Careers

Employability

Employment rate of this course

Average starting salary

What are the career options with a degree in Fashion Design?

Middlesex has strong links with art and design employers. Our industry partners sponsor final year students and give visiting lectures. Your work will be viewed by a large number of industry employers when they attend our final year degree show. Some students may also be specially selected for our annual press show, judged by high profile figures in the fashion industry. Previous judges include Louise Gray, J.JS Lee and James Long.

Previous graduates have gone on to work in a wide range of roles in design, styling and fashion promotion. They include Richard Gray, Mark Fast, Thom Murphy and Julian Seaman.

What about work placements?

Work placements are proven to increase your success in the job market as well as being a fantastic experience. We encourage as many students as possible to grasp this opportunity. A period of work experience of approximately six weeks is embedded in the degree in the middle of the second year. This is in the weeks leading up to London Fashion Week in February. It is an assessed part of the degree offering a wonderful opportunity to work with fashion designers in their studios at their busiest time of the year and often leads to job offers. In recent years we have had students working with, among others, Peter Pillotto, Gareth Pugh, Vivienne Westwood and Alexander McQueen. Students are supported by the Fashion tutors and the Placement Officer.

Profiles

What our students say

Pop star Rihanna modelled one of Zainab's creations on stage at the Wireless Festival when Zainab won Sky Living's Styled to Rock competition. She currently works for a British luxury fashion house.

"I brought one of the outfits that I created for my final year project to the auditions and was honoured to even be selected by Rihanna for the show, let alone go on to win the competition. For the final designers left at the end of the series, it felt like such a long wait for her to appear on stage at the Wireless concert. I was completely stunned when she came out in my outfit and went crazy! I don't normally cry, but burst into tears when she walked out in my piece.

"I learnt lots of new techniques at Middlesex, which helped me to be creative while sticking to the brief for each show. The competition was an incredible experience and working with a star as big as Rihanna was fun as she was laid back and pretty normal."

Yanki LeungBA Fashion Design

"The course helped me think wider and go further. This new way of thinking improved me and has helped direct my career progression. I am hoping to return and study a masters to help me develop to the next stage of my career. A masters will improve my CV, offer new information from different perspectives and give me new skills. For a designer, these skills are not just for use at university; they are skills that you carry with you throughout your creative life."

Academic profile

Richard Sorger graduated from Middlesex in 1991 with a first in Fashion Design. Upon graduating he moved to Milan for a year to teach fashion design in a private school, before returning to the UK to work for London based designer Abe Hamilton. After two years, Richard decided to concentrate more on the teaching side of fashion design, taking up posts at various institutions including The London College of Fashion, Middlesex University and Central Saint Martins. In 2004, Richard started designing his eponymous label, (clients included Courtney Love, Jennifer Lopez, Cindy Crawford, Kate Beckinsale and Heidi Klum,) and in 2009 he launched his second line, RJS by Richard Sorger. (Clients currently include Kelis, Alexandra Burke, Cheryl Cole, Alice Dellal, Diane Vickers, Fearne Cotton, Marina and the Diamonds, Sienna Miller, Sarah Harding and Jessie J.) He has been commissioned to produce special pieces for Swarovski and for the Victoria and Albert Museum, who recently acquired one of his dresses for their permanent collection. He has collaborated with Meadham Kirchhoff, Manolo Blahnik (for Meadham Kirchoff) and ASOS. Visit Richard's website.

Workshops

The studio workshops in our state-of-the-art £80 million facility, The Grove, mean almost everything can be done in house. We have an extensive range of professional standard equipment including industrial sewing machines and overlockers, leather machines, button holers, fusing presses and cutting tables.

You also have access to a wide range of art and design facilities to help realise your ideas through art forms such as photography, illustration and reprographics.